Innovation Insights
by Stephen Shapiro
Today’s blog entry is a goal-free approach to brainstorming. Brainstorming sessions are useful. The standard approach is one person up front facilitating, while the conversation is single-threaded. To overcome this limitation, some groups use breakout sessions. The problem with this
A reader sent me the following excerpt from “Good and Bad Procrastination” by Paul Graham: “When I think of the people I know who’ve done great things, I don’t imagine them dutifully crossing items off to-do lists. I imagine them
Although some of you know me as the “goal-free” guy, my main business is innovation and creativity. I am an advisor to large corporations who want to create a culture of innovation. And I help individuals and organizations develop break-through
Goal-Free Living has been featured on the PBS TV show “Between the Lines” for quite some time now. It has been slowly making its way around the country. Recently the show aired in Philadelphia. Barry Kibrick, the show’s host, noted
A number of years ago, in an attempt to get more students to join their humanities program, Indiana University ran an advertising campaign with some great (goal-free type) slogans like: “Do What You Want When You Graduate or Wait Twenty
I was recently interviewed for a podcast (after some opening comments) on Michael Pollock’s website. He specializes in helping small business owners use blogs and other new media tools to grow their business. I got some great tips from his
In running my business, I use a number of cool technologies — technologies to play audio and video on my websites, for blogging, for desktop productivity, and more. Today’s blog entry is a list of my favorites — many of
Sunday evening I had more fun than I have had in a long time. Let me explain. A while back I stumbled across a wonderful company that does gift bags for VIP events like the Oscars. Goal-Free Living has been
I recently went golfing with my dad. I’m not the greatest of golfers, but I always have a wonderful time with him. He ALWAYS wins (easily), even when he handicaps me one stroke a hole. Golfing is a great metaphor
Creativity is often about solving problems with non-linear thinking. One of my favorite techniques for warming up the brain is the use of “lateral” brain teasers. These are questions that can not be solved via traditional logic. Rather they require
I am the Vice President of Programming and the President Elect for the New England National Speakers Association. I held my first meeting in this role the other day, with Erik Hansen, Tom Peters’ Brand Manager, as our guest speaker
Back in July I was a keynote speaker at the Creative Problem Solving Institute. While there, I met Russ Schoen, a fellow creative-type who shared with me a simple, yet powerful technique for making decisions. I am sure that most
I am currently vacationing on Cape Cod, Massachusetts with my family. While in Provincetown, we found a store that had some beautiful cards with some great quotes. Here are my favorites: “Ever notice that ‘what the hell?’ is always the
From time to time, I will post blog entries which are not directly related to the goal-free topic, but rather are related to the process I went through for pulling together the book. Topics may include getting published, blogging, or
Today I was interviewed on The Student Operated Press, an internet radio station. Click here to listen to this interview. Note that there is a lengthy introduction on the audio promoting their website, so be patient.
Today’s blog is related to my innovation and creativity work. I recently discovered a new Google offering, Google Trends. Type in a word or phrase, and it will show you a graph of how often that expression is searched (as
Last week I attended the National Speakers Association annual convention in Orlando, Florida along with 1,700 other professional speakers from around the world. When one is held captive with this many orators for an extended period of time, it becomes
I recently saw the movie “Click” with Adam Sandler. Although it wasn’t a great movie, it did get me to think more about what happens when you make your life about goals. Sandler’s character (Michael Newman) is given a remote
I recently gave a speech at the Creative Problem Solving Institute, hosted by the Creative Education Foundation. Today’s blog entry is a brief clip from that speech. This is, in my opinion, one of the funniest stories from the book.
A while back I read a document which was released by the US military under the Freedom of Information act. Regardless what you may think of the Department of Defense, this confidential document contains some interesting ideas . During a
Last week at the Creative Problem Solving Institute, I met Anthony Hyatt, a violinist and creativity facilitator. He is also an instructor at the Arts for the Aging, Inc. (AFTA) organization where he teaches senior citizens to dance and move.
Albert Einstein once said, “When you sit with a nice girl for two hours, it seems like two minutes. When you sit on a hot stove for two minutes, it seems like two hours.” This is relativity. What if you
I recently attended the Book Expo of America (BEA) — the annual convention of the book industry. Thousands of new books are on display by hundreds of publishers. As an author, it is daunting to see how many new titles
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